It's the Devil In the Details!

So Hugo Chavez just referred to George Bush as a 'devil', in his speech to the United Nations Assembly. Predictably, these remarks have caused a firestorm of indignation and criticism, such as, "How dare he come into our country and insult our leader!" There was also a host of other responses from various other politicians eager to distance themselves from Chavez's remarks. What everyone seems to forget however, is our leader has aided and abetted those who have tried twice, to overthrow and possibly kill Chavez, who was democratically elected. And worse, one of our leading evangelical Christians, Pat Robertson, also publicly called for Chavez's assassination. These are glaring examples of two professing Christians, who see no inconsistency in trying to kill someone they don't like, and the message of Jesus, which says to love one's enemies, and to be blessed as peacemakers. Also let us not forget that Bush previously identified Chavez as being part of the "axis of evil", and called him a populist dictator, a tyrant, and a drug trafficker, among other things. How should we expect Chavez to react to that kind of personal attack and prior attempts to kill him? Why should we be surprised that he views Bush as a 'devil'? If Bush does not like being called a 'devil', I suggest he stop doing devilish things, like lying us into an illegal war, torturing captured enemy soldiers, and a host of other things. And how would we view someone who actively tried to kill us? I think Chavez used this world stage to respond to the attempts on his life that Bush was a part of, so I am not surprised at what he said. What I do commend Chavez for, is his humanitarian sale of low-cost heating fuel and gasoline last year, to our urban poor in the northeast states. This year he plans to increase the amount available to 100 million gallons, up from 40 million gallons sold last year, to the poor in a total of nine states. As an ex-oilman, Bush should be embarrassed and insulted that a foreigner is doing more for the fuel needs of our poorest citizens, than he is doing. Where is Bush's compassion for the poor of our country in the face of unconscionable doubling and tripling of fuel prices since he took office? It took a stranger to provide the price relief so desperately needed by so many of our citizens. It should also be remembered, that both Chavez and Fidel Castro immediately offered to send badly needed aid to the victims of Katrina, but it was rejected by the Bush administration, long before FEMA belatedly acted to relieve their suffering.

Considering all this, who would you say is a 'devil', and who would you say is 'evil'?